In Her own Defense
by Aldrian Kyrrith
Summary: Oneshot: PostPretense: Lya must defend her actions to the Nox leadership in a judicial hearing.


In Her own Defense

Aldrian Kyrrith

Disclaimer: I do not own Stargate SG-1.

L

She stood in the center of a spacious room, devoid of light. She could not even see the faces of the two individuals that had come with her to this Hearing, though she could sense their presence and, for this, she was thankful. She had known all along what would come of her defiance, even if she had assured Sam that things were different. She had only hidden the ion cannon but, in the end, it did not matter. The Goa'uld incursion had been destroyed and she had been partly responsible for this destruction. The Nox were a highly pacifistic people and allowed no exception to their rules. All acts of defiance were ultimately settled in this room. In this council.

To be honest, she was scared. To say otherwise would have been an act of deceit and Lya was not one to lie to herself. She was nervous, anxious, scared, maybe even terrified. However, at the same time, she was somewhat happy. Even knowing what would happen at the end, this had been her choice and she believed it had been the right one. Hiding the Ion Cannon would have been an evil, but she had no doubt that not doing so: letting the Tollan be destroyed and SG-1 die in their defense, she believed that that would have been a greater evil by far. That was why, even knowing what would come at the end, she wouldn't have done things any differently.

"It will be all right."

She turned towards the voice and, even though she could not see his face, she recognized who it had been. Anteaus must have sensed the frenzied state of her mind. She nodded in agreement, "It will be."

At that moment, the room was engulfed with a blinding white light and Lya had to blink several times as her eyes adjusted to the new conditions. Finally, after a few moments, she was able to comfortably regard her surroundings. The room was like one cavernous expanse, devoid of any interior furnishings, its white walls towering far above her and expanding a vast distance before terminating at the far wall. Aside from herself, Opher and Anteaus were the only inhabitants inside, standing beside her in the center of the room. Patiently, she waited for the hearing to begin, suspecting all the while that her argument would fall on deaf ears.

Thankfully, she didn't have to wait long. Within moments, she heard a voice speak from the other side of the wall. It was from the leading member of the Council, the oldest and most venerated leader whom the Nox had.

"Lya," he said calmly, "daughter to Tievran and Opher, sister to Anteaus, you know why you are here?"

"She made a mistake," Anteaus replied.

"Anteaus, son to Tievran and Opher, you are not the one under investigation," the Council Leader responded, a slight trace of venom underneath his calmly spoken words, "You are allowed to observe, to give comfort to the accused, but one thing you are not allowed to do is interfere. The question is directed to Lya. How do you respond?"

After a moment of silence, Lya shook her head, resolute to defend herself honestly. If she did not regret her actions, why then would she betray her motivations?

"No," Lya replied, "It was not a mistake. It was a conscious choice."

"So you admit that your actions were based on conscious desire?" the Council leader replied.

Lya nodded, "All actions are based on desire, on one form or another. It matters little whether the desire is conscious or not."

"Well spoken," the Council Leader agreed, "Your reputation for sophistry precedes you. Nevertheless, your response only dooms your defense even more. This brings up the question, why did you break our most sacred law? Why did you hide the Ion Canon, and assist the violence of one people against another."

Lya was silent for a moment, thinking out her response, "The only other option was to let the Tollan be destroyed and I do not believe that that course of action is entirely justifiable either. The Way forbids us from interfering in external conflict, but is the Way correct?"

"An interesting question," the Council Leader replied, "for one as young as you. To be honest, I regret the way things have unraveled. Had things turned out differently, you could one day have ended up in this position. Nevertheless, your question is a good one, and I believe it deserves a reply. Tell me, Lya. What do you know of our history?"

"We were allied with the Asgard, Ancients and Furlings many thousands of years ago and, after the Alliance broke up…"

"No," the Council Leader interrupted her, "I see you don't know as much history as I had expected. It, in some ways, explains your defiance. Perhaps you would have acted differently had you known of our greatest mistake. Nevertheless, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. It isn't spoken about much."

"What mistake?" Lya answered.

The Council Leader was silent for a moment before giving his response, "During the years of the Alliance, we did not yet follow the Way. True, we were relatively peaceful even then, but we were not pacifistic. During this time period, a threat emerged in the form of the Goa'uld. The Asgard, the Nox, The Ancients and the Furlings all worked together to contain the Goa'uld threat but, in the end, they were growing more and more numerous while we were growing less. Tell me, Lya, do you know what made the Goa'uld such threatening enemies?"

Lya shook her head, after which the Council Leader continued his explanation, "It is their rate of reproduction, along with their natural healing properties. In short, a Goa'uld can heal virtually any injury or sickness while its numbers increase out of control. All the while, they continued to assimilate technology and take on hosts, further expanding their base of knowledge. Something had to be done and it was the Nox who finally came up with the answer. A virus."

Lya was silent as she considered the full implications of the Council Leader's revelations. If he was correct, then was it possible that it had been the Nox that had destroyed the Ancients so long ago?

"I can see that you've already figured it out," the Council Leader agreed, "The Nox killed the Ancients. We did not mean to. We were only challenging those that were out of control, seeking to conquer and to enslave. To defeat them, we engineered a virus that targeted individuals who possessed natural healing technologies. Unfortunately, it was only after we unleashed it that we had heard that among the Goa'uld hosts, a few numbered among the Ancients. When these hosts contracted it, the Virus spread, until the entire civilization which the Ancients had built had been infected. Ultimately, the virus died down but the results were, nevertheless, final. We destroyed our most trusted allies and our friends and, when we realized this, we pledged to bury our weapons and vowed never to make such a mistake again. The Way was formulated not long afterward, and to deviate from it in even the slightest way is an unforgivable transgression. I hope that answered your question. In short, yes, the Way is correct."

Lya was silent for a moment, still coming to terms with this latest information, "The Nox have a terrible history and I do not dispute that the virus was unforgivable. However, there exists a vast difference between hiding an Ion Canon and attempting the destruction of an entire species."

"Is there?" the Council Leader replied, "In both cases, you are taking the lives of those you consider your enemies. The only difference lies in the scale in lives. Can something as petty as this truly differentiate between that which is justifiable and that which is not?"

Lya shook her head, "Perhaps not. In many ways, I guess my actions were against the Way and, for lack of a better term, wrong. Nevertheless, I still hold that to do nothing and allow the Tollan to be destroyed would have been more wrong. In doing so, we'd be making the same mistake which we had made long ago."

"You are defiant," the Council Leader observed, "But you believe in your own defiance. That is good. I can tell that you do not regret your actions. Tell me, if you were to be given the chance to redo events regarding the Tollan, would you?"

"Of course she wouldn't," Anteaus interrupted, trying to keep Lya from getting into any more trouble. However, after he had made his statement, Lya once again disagreed with him.

"Yes. I would."

"I am not surprised. You question the Way, and your defiance is based on your disagreement concerning it. However, before sentencing you, it would only be fair to allow you to complete your argument. As a result, please answer me the same relative question I answered for you. Why is the Way wrong?"

Lya was silent for a moment as she considered her answer, "The Way states that we are not allowed to take sides in the battles of other people. The Way states that doing so benefits the galaxy as a whole. However, in doing nothing, we allow the conflict to grow, to build. Had I not acted, an entire civilization would have been destroyed. In following the Way, I would have committed the very transgression whose existence the Way had been developed as a response against. The Way forces us to overlook slavery, conquest, and far more death toll than we ourselves would ever reap by means of force alone."

"And what would you have us do?" the Council Leader replied, "Build a fleet and conquer the Goa'uld. Wage an all out war against them as our ancestors once did? However, what would happen once they were defeated? What do we do with our enemies? Do we destroy them, expel them, enslave them? What will become of the worlds they had conquered? Would we replace the Goa'uld as overlords, committing the very same crimes about which you speak? The course you suggest would lead to this final result. Diverging from the Way can only lead to great misfortune for all involved."

"I am not saying that conquest is the correct response," Lya replied, "However, doing nothing about it is not."

The Council Leader was silent for a moment, before he responded, "In some ways, you are correct, if a bit overly idealistic. The correct answer is there is no right response. All courses of actions are incorrect. Instead of choosing the right response, therefore, we can only choose the best or, more accurate, the least harmful. Of the possible options, I would argue that the Way fits this niche the best. Although I will admit that it is not entirely ideal, it does have the least ill costs."

"Now you are the one arguing on scales," Lya observed.

"Perhaps, but it is nevertheless, a truth. The Way causes less harm in the long run then any of the other alternatives. Your alternative will only repeat the mistakes of the past."

"There is that risk," Lya agreed peaceably, "But in following it, we already do repeat the mistake. Perhaps a correct path will be difficult to find, but I still remain determined that a hidden option does exist, one that follows neither the Way nor militaristic aggression. I would hope to find it."

"Your argument dooms your own case," the Council Leader stated, a regretful tone in his voice, "As much as it pains me to do so, I must call a vote. We will speak again in thirty minutes concerning our decision. Until that time."

Lya turned towards Anteaus and Opher, noting the disappointment in their eyes. All three of them knew how the Council would vote. Her own arguments had doomed her from the very beginning. That was why, thirty minutes later, when the council reconvened, there was little surprise when they heard the decision.

In three weeks time, Lya was to be put to death. There was disappointment and there was sorrow. However, even as she considered her fate, Lya was strangely calm and at ease. In fact, it was the most calm she had felt since the Triad had been held. She had taken a stand and stuck to it.

Of all the emotions that sprung when she learned her fate, the only one that did not arise was regret. She had done what she believed was right and, even though it led to her death, she would much rather sacrifice her own life then sacrifice the lives of her friends and loved ones.

She smiled at the thought of it. Perhaps that was the True Way.


End file.
